Formation and Change of Migrants’ Notion of Place Under the Influence of Information and Communication Technologies and Glocalization

Funded by: Humboldt Foundation
Principal Investigators: Tabea Bork-Hüffer
Project Period: 2013–2016

An increasing variety and complexity of digital media (internet and mobile communications) are changing the ways in which people are confronted with, perceive and communicate about space and place. This project investigated the difference that digital media make in people’s sense of place. It investigated the following main research questions:

1. How do the choice and use of digital media change during the migration process?
2. How does the use of digital media affect migrants’ spatial perception and sense of place?

It analysed practices of digital media choice by migrant professionals in Singapore during the migration and settlement process and its effect on their notion of the destination space. Relocating to a new place makes conscious reflection on the nature of the future place of living necessary and opens an ideal entry point for research on the role of mediation in place perception.

Methods: Qualitative Research, Longitudinal Study, Cross-Cultural Comparison, Mixed methods Research